In the Wake of Celebi
by Smith W
Summary: Ash and Co. travel back in time 20 years while trying to catch a Celebi. Please r&r!
1. Introduction

Chapter 1-Introduction

Throughout time, people have speculated about time travel.The idea of modifying the past and seeing the future has sparked countless stories, all speculating about what, exactly, would occur.Until now (the word now, of course, doesn't mean all that much when talking about time travel), no theory on time travel had ever been tested, as no one had ever traveled through time.Since the recent discovery of the pokémon Celebi by Professor Michael Goldstein, time travel has been made possible, but without firmly established rules, ways of controlling one's final destination, or a complete understanding of the underlying principles, no one has attempted it (that is, until now).Who would be so stupid as to travel through time without having any idea what he or she was doing?This story concerns itself with such a person, and this person is probably the first one that came to your mind when you read the previous description.I am, of course, referring to Ash Ketchum.


	2. Through the Portal

Chapter 2-Through the Portal

Ash, Misty, and Brock were lost, as usual.Just like all the other times, 

it was a forest that they were lost in (in this case, it was the Ilex Forest).

Just like always, Brock was looking at a map, and Misty was yelling at Ash.She 

was about to begin another unflattering description of his intelligence when Ash 

spotted a landmark.

"Hey, Brock!What does your map say about that altar thi- hey! Isn't that 

a pokémon?"

Noticing that it was, and failing to grasp the stupidity of his question 

("OF COURSE IT'S A POKÉMON!WHAT DID YOU THINK IT WAS, A GIANT BLOCK OF 

CHEESE?") he swiftly pulled out his pokédex and pointed it at the half-bug, 

half-fairy thing in front of him.The device told him, in the same monotone 

that it always did, a few important facts about it: its name was Celebi, its 

types were grass and psychic, there were certain attacks a trainer should watch 

out for when facing it (this was followed by a list of these attacks), it was 

the only known pokémon that could travel through time, and it was exceedingly 

rare.This information, of course, did not make Ash change his battle plan, 

because he only had one prepared: have Pikachu zap the thing, then throw a 

pokéball at it.

"Pikachu, GO!" he yelled with his usual enthusiasm.This sent Pikachu 

running towards Celebi, but it also had the unfortunate effect of alerting 

Celebi to the fact that it was about to be attacked and, if possible, captured.

In order to escape, it opened something that anyone acquainted with fantasy 

role-playing would not hesitate to call a "dimension door".This description, 

however, is only partially accurate, for the portal went through time as well as 

space.Whatever you want to call it, the Celebi jumped through, or rather, it 

flew through.Unable to stop, Pikachu went through with it

"Wait!Come back!" Ash yelled imploringly as he ran through after it.

Calmly walking through the portal, Brock told Misty that "We have to 

follow him to make sure he doesn't kill his own grandmother or something like 

that."

Reluctantly and silently (there was no one left to talk to), Misty became 

the third person to travel through time.


	3. History Made (and Unmade)

Chapter 3-History Made (and Unmade)

When Ash and his friends went back in time, hardly anyone noticed.The only witnesses to this historical event were a couple of scientists at Mt. Moon Observatory.

"Come over here.I think there's something you should see," one of the scientists (whose name happened to be Bob) said to the other.

"Yes?"The other scientist (whose name happened to be Joe) came over to look at the map Bob had called up on his computer.The map showed a large area, encompassing Jhoto, Kanto, and the Orange Islands; it could be zoomed in on an area of interest.The map in question showed radiation levels in areas throughout the world.Usually, it showed light red patches on top of laboratories, power plants, and a conveniently-ignored Team Rocket nuclear arsenal; this time it was marked where no radiation had been found before.But the strange thing about it was that, instead of being a light red, the patch was a dark green.Joe noticed that Bob was gesturing at this patch, and was disappointed.

"Aw, Bob.It's just another Celebi.I know they look odd on the map, but this is perfectly normal to them."

"That's not what I meant.A few hundred kilograms are passing through that wormhole.Celebi only weighs five.Who would be such an idi- what were we talking about, anyway?"

"I don't know.Why are you pointing to a blank spot on the radiation map?"

"There must have been something there earlier.Let me check the records."

The records showed that no abnormal activity had ever occurred in that area.This was entirely true.Ash and his friends had never tried to capture a Celebi, a time portal was never opened in Ilex Forest, and humans had still not attempted time travel.None of this happened for a very good reason: Ash and Co. had never existed in the first place.


	4. Arrival

Chapter 4-Arrival

To say that Ash and company never existed is not to say that they didn't make it through the portal.Although their births were erased from the timeline, they were protected from these changes by a secondary effect of the portal.In order to prevent problems for its user, it cut the user off from the rest of the timeline, eliminating most of the paradoxes of time travel and helping to prevent some unfortunate situations (i.e. nonexistence) from occurring.Even with this protection, however, Ash had still gotten his friends into a very strange situation.

Ash and his group of fellow travelers had arrived in a town that seemed familiar to them, but was not easily identified as one that they had been to.It was certainly not where they had came from, and it confused Misty and Ash greatly.Brock was able to figure out what was happening surprisingly quickly, and he owed it all to newspapers.The discovery of Celebi was still very recent, so he still clearly remembered reading an article about it.After figuring out that he was in a different time and place, he discovered where and when with the help of another newspaper.He glanced around and saw a man sitting on a bench, reading the Pallet Times.The newspaper was marked "Monday, October 6, 1980".He quickly pulled the other two into an empty alley and quickly explained the situation to them.

"We're in Pallet Town, 20 years in the past.No one knows who you are, because you haven't been born yet; nor do they know about Celebi, because it hasn't been discovered yet.We need to make sure events happen the way that they're supposed to and find a way back to our own time.Be careful not to do anything that effects anyone, unless it's unimportant or helps us get back."

"Why can't we just keep going like nothing happened?" Ash inquired.

"Do you know how much that will change the future?What if half the people you know are never even born?What if Team Rocket attacks, and you can't stop them because you didn't want to take the trouble to get out of a time you weren't even supposed to be in in the first place?" Brock seemed very angry.

"Excuse me, I couldn't help but overhear your conversation.Do you have any proof that you're time travelers, or are you just insane?"The voice was not one that Brock had heard before, but it sounded kind of like Ash's voice.

"I think we just messed up the future," Brock whispered.


	5. The Welcoming Committee

Chapter 5-The Welcoming Committee

The three of them just stood there, trying to figure out how to respond.They hadn't been standing there very long before the voice decided to ask again.

"Do you actually think you're time travelers, or are you just another group of Imakuni? wannabes?"

Ash decided to answer him.Abandoning all concern about how it might affect his life later on (that is, 20 years later, calculating from the year he was in now), he stepped out of the alley and said, "No, we actually are time travelers, from the year 2001.We came here in search of the rare time traveling pokémon Celebi.Well, I guess you wouldn't know about Celebi, it hasn't been discovered yet.But we really are from the future!We have proof!"

"It's true," Brock said as he and Misty stepped out of the alley."He has a Pokédex that Professor Oak gave him.The Professor should be able to authenticate it."

"I am crazy, but only about one thing," Misty said, making Ash feel somewhat embarrassed."I'm just crazy about water-type pokémon!"Ash was visibly relieved.

"Oh.Well, then, I'm sure there are a lot of interesting things you could tell me, if you really are from the future as you claim to be, but I have something very important that I need to do, and I don't have time to talk."With that, the thirteen-year-old boy to whom the voice belonged ran off.As he went by, Ash had a strange feeling that he had seen pictures of the boy before.He knew that this person must be significant somehow, but Ash didn't think that he had really changed anything by talking to this person for a minute.He had not, after all, told this person, whoever he was, anything important.He decided that it would be more convenient to forget the whole incident.

Brock was about to take his own advice and suggest that the most sensible thing to do was to visit Professor Oak when a red-haired police officer came over to them and said, "I don't think I've seen any of you here before.Did you just move in?"

"No, we're pokémon trainers," Ash exclaimed.

"You look a little young to be a pokémon trainer.How old are you?"

"Eleven"

"Legal age is thirteen.May I see you licenses?"

The three of them handed the officer their trainer's licenses.

"This one says it's from Pallet," the officer said, disappointed, "but it doesn't look like any license I've ever seen.And you two sure aren't gym leaders.Come with me."


	6. At the Station

Chapter 6-At the Station

At the police station, Brock decided to tell the officer their story.He knew there was little chance of her believing it, but anything was better than just sitting there, waiting until they had to try to pay a fine with money that wouldn't be minted for 20 years.Suddenly, he remembered what he had said earlier.

"Could we call Professor Oak?" Brock requested.

"Sure, fine, I guess I have to let you.Says so in my contract or something like that," the officer said as she led Brock to the videophone.She was obviously having a bad day.

Brock punched in the appropriate phone number, and the blank screen suddenly began to show the face of

Ash: Cats.

Misty: (Cats) How are you gentlemen !!All your base are belong to us.

Brock: Shut up you two.This isn't an MST.

Professor Oak.He looked twenty years younger than Brock remembered because, or course, he was.

"Hello, this if Professor Oak.How may I help you?"

"Professor Oak, this is- well, you don't know me now, but you will in 20 years.You see, my friends and I have been transported back in time from the year 2001, and we need you to authenticate my friend's pokédex as being from that time period."Ash came over to the screen and stuck his pokédex in the slot beneath the screen.

"It's for real," said Professor Oak.

"Okay, you're free to go," the officer said."I can't legally fine you.Statue of limitations or something like that."

After hanging up the phone and retrieving his pokédex, Ash led his friends out the door.They decided that the best place to go would be Professor Oak's laboratory.If anyone could get them back home, Professor Oak could.


End file.
